MTN, Africa's largest cellular operator, says it expects to have added 21.8 million subscribers to its base by the end of the year, up from its previous prediction of 20.1 million, a 1.7 million gain.
The company yesterday issued a subscriber update for the quarter to September and said it gained 4%, to 158.6 million, compared with the end of June. The company says it maintained market share in most of its markets.
Although social unrest remained a factor in some countries, Syria, Yemen and Cote d'Ivoire increased net connections during the quarter, says MTN.
The South and East Africa (SEA) region contributed 23%, slightly up from 22% at June, while West and Central Africa (WECA) accounted for 44%, compared with 45% three months ago, and Middle East and North Africa (MENA) made up 33% of the base, which is flat quarter-on-quarter.
The SEA region increased its subscriber base by 5.1% for the quarter, which MTN attributes to its SA operation, which grew 5.9%.
MTN says the WECA region increased its subscriber base 2.8% for the quarter, as a result of slower subscriber growth in Nigeria, which only gained 1.4%.
Subscriber registration in Nigeria negatively impacted connections as the GSM market declined from 82.7 million to 81.84 million subscribers during the third quarter. The deadline has now been extended indefinitely, says MTN.
The MENA region recorded a 5.3% increase in subscribers for the quarter, which was mostly due to a 3.5% gain in Iran.
Related story:
MTN hires African chiefs
Share